Beast Rider
The Beast Rider was a Locust Drone that rode on a Bloodmount, Reaver or even the Brumak.Grenadier Beast Rider - Action Figure They either use a Hammerburst or Boltok Pistol. Beast Riders rode on top of Brumaks and Reavers during the E-Day assault. They appeared around the Mission to Montevado on Bloodmounts but their mounts were already known to the COG.Gears of War: Hollow The Beast Rider was a dreaded enemy that inflicted heavy casualties on the Gears. History Destruction of Halvo Bay During the Locust assault of Halvo Bay, many Beast Riders were ordered by General Karn to kill every single citizen they found. Riding atop Bloodmounts and Reavers, they attacked and slaughtered anyone they encountered across the streets and rooftops of the city. They also led a small assault at the military base of Onyx Point, killed the rich citizens of Seahorse Hills, massacred the Gears stationed at the Halvo Bay Military Academy, and laid siege to a Courthouse in which Kilo Squad was being trialed for their previous actions. Most riders were slain by Kilo but it is assumed that many still survived and aided in the defeat of Col. Ezra P. Loomis and his men, successfully taking over the city. Evacuation of Ilima As Ilima city became the target of General RAAM's forces, many Beast Riders rode atop countless Bloodmounts, Reavers and a pair of Brumaks to destroy evacuation outposts throughout the city and killing every single civilian and Gear they encountered. Zeta-Six faced many riders attacking their evacuation outpost mounting Reavers and then fought a large number of them on their way to Ilima Savings and Trust, Ilima High School and Ilima City Hall riding several Bloodmounts and Reavers. They also came face to face with a Brumak and managed to kill it with Boomshot Grenade Launchers along with its rider. A pair of Beast Riders used two upgraded Reavers to protect RAAM's personal Reaver, which could use Kryll to shield itself. Zeta took down the three Reavers and evacuated the civilians at Dr. Gregory Wisen's orphanage just as the Kryllstorm was about to arrive, leaving the two Riders dead and a wounded RAAM cursing against them. Clearing Montevado .|right|thumb|250px]] After the Lightmass Offensive, Skorge went on a counterattack against human forces and used Beast Riders to clear out sunken human cities, namely Montevado and Ilima.Gears of War: Jacinto's Remnant The Beast Riders cleared the city of the remaining Stranded after being sunk. Delta Squad attacked and the Locust lost several Drones and Bloodmounts. They were able to kill at least one Gear before Delta was able to escape with the remaining Stranded.Gears of War: Hollow Part Six .|left|thumb|200px]] Jilane Campaign At least one Brumak was used during the Jilane Massacre. During the Second Battle of Jilane, at least a single Beast Rider was on foot with his fellow Drones.Gears of War: Barren Operation: Hollow Storm In the final stage of the Locust counterattack, the Horde launched a direct assault on Jacinto City; the COG’s last stronghold and the only major Seran city left.Gears of War 2 With several Brumaks ridden by Beast Riders, the Locust were able to breach the defenses of the city.Gears of War 2 Intro First day of Frost The Horde was able to launch a successful raid on Pomeroy Depot in Sector 4 before hitting Jacinto Med, a major hospital. With dozens of Reavers giving the Drones air support, the desperate raid would seem another easy victory but Delta-One and a wing of King Ravens were able to take down several Reavers and wipe out all the Drones. The COG launched a counterattack known as Operation: Hollow Storm towards the Locust-held city of Landown. The Locust were able to wait and ambushed the COG convoys with over a dozen Reavers and Brumaks emerging from the Hollows. Though the Beast Riders, along with their brothers on the ground, were able to destroy many Derricks and King Ravens, the COG was able to enter Landown and take out another Brumak mounted by a Beast Rider. Inside the Hollows, several Reavers and their Beast Riders ambushed several Gear squads in their search for Nexus. When the city of Ilima was sunk by the Locust, they sent Bloodmounts and their Beast Riders to deal with the few remaining Stranded inside the city. Delta Squad pushed through what remained of the city and killed several riders atop Bloodmounts and Reavers in the process. More riders guarded and piloted Beast Barges inside the Hollow carrying prisoners on their way to be "processed". When Delta Squad boarded one of these barges, they killed several Beast Riders protecting it (including the pilot and the gunner) and were able to hijack it. Beast Riders tried to take it down with rockets from their Reavers but were taken down with the Troika at the back of the barge. Bloodmounts and their riders guarded the Locust processing center from Delta. Beast Riders and Reavers stormed the New Hope Research Facility to try to prevent Delta from leaving but they failed. More Reavers and their riders guarded the path to Mount Kadar against a Centaur tank manned by Delta. Second day of Frost When Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago went to find Maria, a pair of Beast Riders riding atop Bloodmounts attacked the duo while JACK tried to open Maria's cell. They protected JACK and killed both Beast Riders and their Bloodmounts. As they headed towards the Queen's Palace, more Bloodmounts and Reavers, along with their riders, tried to prevent them from reaching the Palace and deploying their beacon. During the Siege of Jacinto, several Beast Riders rode atop Brumaks, Reavers and a few Bloodmounts to breach the defenses of the city. They faced several Gear squads, including Delta who was trying to find a way to sink Jacinto, but they were slain along with their mounts. When Delta came under attack by a Brumak which caused the building they were in to collapse, they were forced to find a way to attack the Brumak and kill its rider. After circling the building and overcoming the Brumak's machine guns, the Gears managed to take down the rider and hijack the Brumak so they could use it to sink Jacinto. Stragglers after the flood A few hours after the sinking of Jacinto along with the Locust army trapped under and in Jacinto. At least 60 Drones were able to escape the city and headed towards Port Farrall. A single Beast Rider rode atop a Bloodmount towards the city unknowing until ambushed by the COG and leaving all the Drones and Beast Riders dead. Beast Riders, along with the remnant of the Horde, would disappear for the next 18 months. Lambent Pandemic After KR Zero-Four flew over Endeavour Naval Shipyard on a recon mission, several Reavers were sent to chase it and find where it came from. After a month, a single Beast Rider found the island of Azura but was unable to bypass the Maelstrom device. After it was deactivated, the Beast Riders moved on their beasts and took control of the island. A pair of them escorted Queen Myrrah herself to the Deadlands to gather more soldiers, but as soon as they arrived, they saw Marcus Fenix and a group of Gears and Myrrah ordered one of the riders to warn all outposts from there to Azura. Several Beast Riders tried to take down the Gas Barge Delta had hijacked but were overpowered. At Anvil Gate, they laid siege to the city with Reavers and Bloodmounts but were contained. They later tried to stop Delta from reaching the town of Mercy in their Rat Truck. More Beast Riders attacked them at Endeavour Naval Shipyard to stop them from repairing the CNV Adamant. At Azura, they threw everything they could at the humans but were not able to stop them from shutting down the Maelstrom device. They attempted to stop the COG and Gorasni reinforcements but were again stopped. All Drones and their variants died out when the Imulsion Countermeasure Weapon was activated. Appearances Beast Riders can be found riding Bloodmounts and Reavers. They first appear in Act 2 Chapter 5 (Sinking Feeling) of Gears of War 2 and usually appear riding on a Bloodmount. Beast Riders on Bloodmounts also appear in Horde every ten levels. When killed in Horde, the Beast Rider is classified as a Grenadier Elite. Strategies There are three techniques to disposing of Beast Riders. The first is to kill the Bloodmount while he is a moderate distance away, which will knock the Beast Rider to the ground (as if he were hit by a smoke grenade), then run to the Beast Rider and kill him with the Gnasher or Lancer chainsaw. The second is to kill the Beast Rider with a Torque Bow or Longshot Sniper Rifle while they are still on the Bloodmount. This is not recommended for the Hardcore or Insane difficulties as the Bloodmount becomes more dangerous without a rider. The third way is to frag tag the Bloodmount while the Rider is still on it. This will almost always kill the Beast Rider and will most likely kill the Bloodmount as well. However, on higher difficulties, the player will most likely die as well. Behind the scenes *Beast Riders take on two different models between Gears of War 2 and Gears of War 3. In the second game, the Beast Rider is just a Grenadier with a helmet. In the third game, the Beast Rider is just the model of the Drone with the same helmet. It is unknown if Beast Riders have different classes of Locust who play that role. Theron Guards are also known to pilot Reavers and Bloodmounts, but do not own the Beast Rider model or have any difference in their armor or helmets. Multiplayer *The Beast Rider is playable for multiplayer in Gears of War 2. *The Beast Rider is a playable character in Gears of War 3, unlocked at level 5. *In Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, the Beast Rider is an unlockable multiplayer character, available after reaching Level 17. *The Beast Rider is a playable character in Gears of War 4, available in the Queen Myrrah Emergence Gear Pack. References Category:Locust Soldier